Colorado Unit S62 Bighorn Sheep Hunting Guide

Colorado Unit S62 is one of the state's limited-entry bighorn sheep units, offering a rare opportunity for the hunters lucky enough to draw one of its extremely restricted tags. Spanning 680,050 acres with elevations ranging from 4,634 to 9,938 feet, this unit combines rugged high-country terrain with the kind of scarcity that defines Colorado's premier sheep hunting. For hunters chasing a bighorn tag, S62 deserves a close look — both for what the data shows and for what it means to actually draw here.

Bighorn sheep hunting in Colorado is unlike any other big game pursuit in the state. Tags are few, competition is fierce, and most applicants spend years — sometimes decades — accumulating points before they ever have a realistic shot at a tag. Unit S62 fits squarely into that mold. With 83% public land, access for those who do draw is generally solid, and the absence of designated wilderness (0%) means motorized access options may exist in parts of the unit, which can be a meaningful advantage for scouting and packing out a ram.

HuntPilot Analysis: Is Unit S62 Worth Applying For?

For any Colorado resident or nonresident with even a modest point history in the bighorn sheep pool, the honest answer is: it depends on your goals, but the fundamentals here are strong enough to warrant serious consideration.

The harvest data pulled from HuntPilot tells a compelling story about this unit's consistency. Over the six most recent recorded seasons (2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025), Unit S62 has produced outstanding hunter success. Five of those six years show a perfect 100% success rate among five hunters, with only 2023 dipping slightly to 80% (four rams harvested out of five hunters). That is about as reliable a harvest track record as any sheep unit can offer — and it reflects both the extremely low tag numbers typical of bighorn management and the quality of ram habitat within the unit's boundaries.

This is a critical point for hunters evaluating whether to spend precious points here: when you draw a bighorn tag in a unit with this kind of harvest history, you are very likely to fill that tag. That changes the calculus significantly compared to units where hunters draw and then struggle for weeks without ever closing the deal on a legal ram.

Trophy potential is another factor working in S62's favor, though it needs to be framed carefully. The counties overlapping this unit carry a moderate history of trophy-class ram production — not an exceptional pedigree, but a real, documented trophy history that shows this is not simply a numbers unit. Hunters should understand that trophy records are logged at the county level and are shared with neighboring units in the same counties, so any given ram taken here could theoretically have wandered from a bordering unit's herd. Still, a moderate trophy history combined with a high harvest success rate suggests hunters drawing this tag have a genuine chance at a quality, mature ram — not just an opportunity to fill a once-in-a-lifetime tag with any legal animal.

The 83% public land figure is another significant asset. The vast majority of S62 sits on land open to public access, meaning DIY hunters who draw a tag here are not going to be boxed out by private ranches or locked gates. Combined with zero designated wilderness, this unit offers more flexibility for scouting, glassing, and packing logistics than many other Colorado sheep units where wilderness designations force hunters into foot or stock-only access.

The catch, as with virtually every Colorado bighorn unit, is the draw itself. Tags are scarce by design — sheep populations can only sustain a handful of harvests per year — and competition for those tags is intense across residents and nonresidents alike. HuntPilot's data shows this unit issuing roughly five tags per year based on recent harvest reporting, which underscores just how limited the opportunity is. This is not a unit hunters draw casually; it typically requires meaningful point investment, especially for nonresidents.

Bottom line: If a hunter has the points to be competitive for Unit S62, or is willing to start building toward it, the data supports the wait. High, consistent harvest success and a real trophy history make this one of the more rewarding sheep units to draw in Colorado. For hunters just starting a Colorado sheep point strategy, this unit should be on the long-term radar rather than an immediate target.

Harvest Success Rates

The harvest numbers for Unit S62 are remarkably stable across recent seasons, which is notable in a species where annual variability can be significant due to small sample sizes and weather-dependent access.

• 2025: 5 hunters, 5 harvested — 100% success
• 2024: 5 hunters, 5 harvested — 100% success
• 2023: 5 hunters, 4 harvested — 80% success
• 2022: 5 hunters, 5 harvested — 100% success
• 2021: 5 hunters, 5 harvested — 100% success
• 2019: 5 hunters, 5 harvested — 100% success

Five of six recorded seasons show perfect success, with the only blemish being a single unfilled tag in 2023. Averaged across these six years, success sits above 95% — an exceptional figure for any big game species and particularly notable for bighorn sheep, where difficult terrain and low hunter density can sometimes make locating a mature ram challenging even with a tag in hand. This consistency suggests healthy ram numbers, good visibility in the unit's habitat, and hunters who are well-prepared going into their once-in-a-lifetime hunt (as most sheep tag holders are).

Trophy Quality

Trophy records tied to the counties overlapping Unit S62 reflect a moderate history of production. This isn't a unit with an outsized reputation for producing chart-topping rams, but it has a real and credible trophy record that should give confidence to hunters willing to be selective.

Because record-book entries are attributed to county rather than to a specific hunt unit, the rams behind these records may have been taken in S62 itself or in an adjoining unit sharing the same county boundaries. Hunters should treat this as a regional indicator of ram quality and genetic potential rather than a unit-exact guarantee. Combined with the unit's strong harvest success rate, the picture that emerges is one of a healthy, huntable ram population with a genuine — if not extraordinary — trophy ceiling. Hunters drawing this tag should scout thoroughly and be prepared to pass on younger rams early in the season if they're after a true trophy-class animal, since the harvest data confirms that patience is unlikely to cost them the tag entirely.

Access & Terrain

Unit S62's terrain spans a dramatic elevation gradient, from 4,634 feet at its lowest points up to 9,938 feet at its highest — nearly a mile and a half of vertical relief packed into the unit's boundaries. This range suggests hunters will encounter everything from lower-elevation foothill and canyon terrain to true high-alpine sheep country, and preparation should account for both extremes depending on where rams are located during the hunt.

With 680,050 total acres and 83% of that land classified as public, access is a genuine strength of this unit. The large majority of huntable ground is open without needing to negotiate private land access, which is a meaningful advantage in a state where many desirable big game units are locked up by a patchwork of private ranches.

The absence of any designated wilderness (0%) is also worth noting. Unlike many premier sheep units in Colorado's high country that fall within wilderness boundaries — restricting access to foot and stock travel only — S62 hunters may have more flexibility for motorized access to trailheads and staging areas, which can matter significantly for scouting efficiency and, just as importantly, for packing out a ram from steep terrain. Hunters should still expect to do plenty of hiking and glassing once in the field, as bighorn habitat by nature tends to be steep, rocky, and physically demanding regardless of wilderness status.

How to Apply

For the 2026 draw cycle, both resident and nonresident applications for Unit S62 bighorn sheep share the same key dates:

Note that the license fee is a prerequisite cost — hunters must hold a qualifying license before they're even eligible to submit an application, in addition to the application fee itself. For those building points rather than applying to draw immediately, the point fee applies separately from the application fee.

For current point requirements, historical draw statistics, and unit-specific odds, hunters should check HuntPilot's Colorado state page at /states/co, which tracks year-over-year data as the draw system evolves.

Application dates and fees change every draw cycle. For the current deadlines, fees, and draw odds, see HuntPilot's Colorado page at /states/co.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the terrain like in Colorado Unit S62? The unit covers a broad elevation range from 4,634 to 9,938 feet, meaning hunters can expect everything from lower foothill terrain to rugged, high-alpine sheep habitat. With 83% public land and no designated wilderness, access tends to be more flexible than in wilderness-restricted sheep units elsewhere in Colorado, though the terrain itself remains physically demanding given the steep, rocky habitat bighorn sheep prefer.

What is harvest success like in Unit S62? Harvest success has been exceptionally strong in recent years. Five of the last six recorded seasons (2019, 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025) posted 100% success among five hunters each year, with 2023 the only exception at 80% success. This makes S62 one of the more reliable units for tag holders to actually fill their sheep tag once drawn.

How big are the bighorn sheep in Unit S62? Trophy records tied to the counties overlapping this unit show a moderate history of trophy-class ram production. While not among Colorado's elite trophy units, the data indicates a real trophy potential worth targeting for hunters willing to be selective, especially combined with the unit's high harvest success rates.

Is Unit S62 worth applying for? For hunters with competitive points or a long-term point-building strategy in Colorado's bighorn sheep draw, yes. The combination of consistently high harvest success, a moderate but genuine trophy history, and 83% public land access makes this a well-rounded unit worth targeting. As with all Colorado sheep units, expect the draw itself to require significant patience and point investment.

Do nonresidents need a guide to hunt bighorn sheep in Unit S62? Colorado does not impose a state-mandated outfitter requirement for nonresident hunters in this unit, since it carries 0% designated wilderness. Nonresidents are free to hunt DIY if they choose, though many sheep hunters — resident and nonresident alike — opt to hire local guidance given the specialized skills required for scouting and judging rams in steep terrain.